Over the years, the cargo handling industry has made tremendous strides in developing the eco-efficiency of cargo and material handling through more efficient machines, optimization of cargo flows, as well as intelligent equipment and automation.

When conceptualizing the next generation of RTG crane, we at Kuenz were clear that we could not succeed if we weren’t willing to break the mold. We didn’t want to do a simple cut-and-paste job from previous iterations, so the primary objective was to meet the requirements of the future container handling business for more efficiency and speed, as well as enhanced ergonomics.

The growing preponderance of information technologies in maritime shipping has led to an array of buzz words that tend to be rather meaningless without a proper context. One of the most abused terms is ‘smart’ as applied to logistics, such as ‘smart supply chains’ or ‘smart port’.

Port waterways, which are the routes for ships entering and leaving a port, have become one of the bottlenecks restricting port development. A common question for decisionmakers is whether to build a new waterway or expand an existing one-way waterway to a two-way traffic waterway. Due to the complexity and randomness of port systems, numerical methods sometimes fail to obtain solutions to waterway problems. Simulation technology has been generally applied in port waterway management because of the advantages of dealing with such complex systems. Considering the high cost of construction and dredging for waterways, decision-makers will be more confident in their decisions when the entire process of ships’ entering and leaving a port through waterway can be simulated. Our research team at Dalian University of Technology has developed a Port Waterway Simulation Model (PWSM) to simulate the whole process of ships transiting the waterway and handling at berth.

As a result of increasing pressure to improve supply chain predictability, uncertain containership berthing times in ports is one of the main challenges the industry is facing today. Innovative ways of providing visibility and transparency to port operations, along with the various initiatives from port authorities and other governmental entities, are accelerating the process towards new ways of doing things in the berth management field. So let’s start with who’s who in the berth management game. Although there are different models, we will focus on those ports with one or more container terminals, where the terminal is the entity dealing with the different ocean carriers to assign priorities and allocate the berth position on a day-to-day basis. This happens regardless of whether the port authority eventually controls the standard berthing windows or approves individual berth positions, which is more of a formality than an operational acting role. This scenario is also applicable to the port authority that owns and controls the terminal, but where the internal roles are somehow separate.

The cruise industry has emerged to become a significant niche to the global tourism industry. The selection of ports of call and itineraries are carefully pondered to maximize the commercial potential and utilization of the ship assets. While large hub ports have the capacity to accommodate additional port calls, it is the smaller ‘exotic’ or ‘must see’ ports that cruisers are seeking to visit; this presents challenges for additional capacity. Berth availability and the capacity of small communities to accommodate large tourist influxes of short duration have become salient issues.

As Dubai continues to take centre stage in the waterfront construction with its iconic initiatives and unmatched magnitude, it is no wonder that one of its visionary projects has taken the sustainable business model to the next level.

Since ancient times, Qatar has been famous for its pearling banks with its seabed and warm shallow waters, conditions favourable to the growth of pearl-bearing oysters and the creation of the finest pearls found anywhere in the world.

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